After Super Mario Bros. hit the scene in 1985, the loveable plumber drove Ninty to great heights and, arguably, became the most recognisable videogame character of all time. But great things inevitably come to an end and evidently there are already calls for Mario's head.

Then again, a break from the comfort zone that is the Super Mario franchise, would surely be too big a risk for Ninty to take in the current climate, and no doubt Mario's army of fans would take a spanner to Nintendo HQ if it did. ®